Be a Drag!
Story by Lilly Montgomery | Design by Mackenzie Murphy | Photos by Dylan Hanson
Glue sticks. Nylon stockings. Glitter, safety pins and an assortment of palettes to rival that of the most famous artists of the century. No, this isn’t a back-to-school shopping list– these are just a few things that a drag performer might keep at hand when preparing for a show.
Hours before the performance set they will start the process of getting ready, a ritual that takes time, resources and a staggering amount of patience. Eyebrows are glued down flat and covered up with foundation, replaced with dramatic pointed arches that cut like knives. Natural hair is slicked back and covered by wigs, or teased to perfection with backcombs and aerosol hairspray to create the ideal silhouette. Heels are strapped on, press-on nails are fixed to fingers and the final touches are put on mascara mustaches.
Who are these people, brave enough to paint on new personas and present themselves in front of a crowd?
These are the rituals of royalty. No, not the monarchical figureheads that may come to mind– drag kings and queens. Performers that take to the stage to spread joy and incite emotion, putting out their most authentic selves and encouraging others to do the same.
Drag performance is a nuanced art form that comes with a unique community and experience. Each drag artist is unique as well, and carries with them the story of how they came to be the person and performer they are now.
Defining Drag
With so many different ways to do drag, it is difficult to narrow down one definition of the practice. Some may say it consists of men dressing up as women and singing in front of a crowd, but this definition is far from all-encompassing and excludes many participants.
Drag is a performance art. It allows individuals to take on a different persona or explore another dimension of themselves, regardless of sex, gender or sexuality. A performer may choose to act as a gender other than their own, or stick to more familiar territory and create a character that highlights the presentation of the gender they identify with. Even further still, some artists will craft personas or numbers in which they act as many genders or none at all, or even as a creature or human hybrid. Whatever the medium, drag allows people to explore these possibilities without judgment.
Kings, Queens and In-Betweens
At the mention of drag, and perhaps at reading the very title of this article, one’s mind may immediately jump to the image of queens as made so popular in recent years by shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race. However, the range of drag performers is far more diverse in reality. “There's more than just queens,” says Roderick Von Schlong, a drag king who performs out of Moscow, Idaho. Von Schlong shares his own experience in the drag performance community. “I love queens. But there's definitely kings, queens, in betweens, drag monsters and royalty. There's a thousand and one titles under the sun.”
One element that Von Schlong enjoys exploring in his performance is combining two costume-based arts: cosplay and drag. In fact, this was one of the factors that contributed to him beginning drag. Von Schlong shares, “I started out making costumes and cosplaying. I had fun doing other characters, and I wanted to make my own character.” From that point forward he began to develop this drag self, learning more and more about the character during each performance. However, Von Schlong has not given up his roots in cosplay.
One of Von Sclong’s favorite performances in his drag career has been one of these character-inspired drag pieces. “The first time that I actually crossed cosplay and drag, I did a Star Lord number,” Von Schlong says. “‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ had just come out, and the audience cheered and then went silent, and it was just this really fun, awe inspiring moment.” Von Schlong’s unique experience has allowed him to find his niche in performing as a drag king, though everyone’s journey will be different.
The Beast Inside
Leora Laurino, a drag and performance artist who resides in Idaho, is another individual whose characters acts have set her apart from others and given a unique feel to her performances. Two different characters share the spotlight of Laurino’s performances, encompassing a broad spectrum of identity. Having these two personas, one masculine and one feminine, allows her more anonymity in her acts, as well. “That also allows me to switch between genders, because you really can't tell who's under that much makeup, so I like that freedom,” Laurino states. This circumstance has given Laurino a particularly unique experience when it comes to performing.
The first of these two personas, Ty Grass, is what Laurino describes as a “masculine daddy.” When embodying this character in performances, she shares that the focus is on behavior rather than overt action. “My interest is more about the emotional intensity and the body language of masculinity,” Laurino states, adding that both her favorite part of performing as Ty Grass and one of the biggest audience appeals of the character is his ability to incite a kind of “gay panic,” or sudden jarring attraction to someone of a gender usually not opposite one’s own.
In this space, where sexuality can be seen as a form of social divergence, the performance of a drag king can be shocking and enticing. As Laurino says, “the huge, rebellious act of a drag queen is a man willing to wear a dress. And most commonly, the biggest rebellion that a drag king can do is have the courage to take their shirt off.”
Laurino’s second character brings an element of inhuman creativity to her performances. “I also perform as a were-tiger as Lady Cindarie,” Laurino says. For this persona she undergoes a total transformation, painting her face to resemble that of a tiger and creating an entirely new visage. This tiger persona was originally a kind of tool that allowed Laurino to process her emotions and experiences in a headspace adjacent to her own, eventually manifesting as this outward appearance. As Laurino says, “there is a beast inside me, but I am not afraid to show it in a beautiful way.”
Initially taken to conventions in an effort to find a community in which she would belong, Laurino’s Lady Cindarie was not immediately accepted due to some elitism in what others expected from the character and costume. The drag community, however, turned out to be more embracing of this new kind of performer, despite not having seen many individuals embody something like this before. “If anyone's going to understand the hours and dedication and talent it takes to transform your face into a tiger, it’s going to be the drag performers,” Laurino says.
The Queen of the Local Scene
Idaho is not the only area, of course, in which drag queens and kings exist. In fact, there are some kings and queens much closer to Central Washington. Mikayla Hunt is a drag queen local to the area, portrayed by one of CWU’s own students. She is eager to share her own experience as a newer performer.
“She came about freshman year in costume tech class,” Hunt shares about the development of her persona. “My mom likes to joke, because I told her that I'd never do drag and now I'm here.” Despite her initial hesitation, Hunt has now performed consistently for the last few years at CWU. She has made a name for herself in the community, taking the stage at both amateur and professional drag events put on by the university. For Hunt, her performance is a way to empower and feel empowered both in and out of drag. “I feel like I always think I'm big and bad in my head,” Hunt says, “I think I'm all that, but as soon as I become Mikayla, I am all that.”
For Hunt, the confidence and excitement that comes with performance can be a little overwhelming at times. “I perform, I get off stage and it feels like I like black out,” Hunt says about her favorite part of putting on a number. “I don't remember being on stage. I get off stage and I'm breathing and I feel that adrenaline high and that adrenaline rush of, ‘I can literally do fucking anything.’”
Although she was only recently introduced to the world, CWU is far from the end of the line for Hunt’s performance persona. “I know I'm going to Seattle,” Hunt says, looking forward to the future, “that's been my goal since I was a kid. But I'd love to take Mikayla to Seattle and continue building her and continue making her a character.”
Ravishing Royalty
As is the case for any art form, the experiences of all performers will vary drastically. Some will have more time on stage and some will have less, some will enjoy performing for specific audiences while some prefer creating recordings in their own home, but one thing primarily remains consistent for all drag artists– passion for the craft and the power it holds. Two drag queens share their own experiences in the community.
“It's all self expression.” says Aquasha DeLusty, a drag queen based out of Moscow, Idaho. DeLusty has been performing drag for over 21 years now, and has cemented her place in the community while fostering the growth of many other kings and queens. During the process of interviewing for this article, three separate performers mentioned her name as a figurehead of the drag community in Washington and Idaho.
DeLusty refers to herself as a “professional drag queen,” though she shares that she still has some hang-ups with the connotations of that title. “I talk to professional actors, and they’re like, ‘I act. That’s what I do, I don’t really view it as professional,’” DeLusty says. “You’re revered in your craft, but calling it professional is kind of an odd thing to do.” Originally an Ellensburg local, DeLusty credits the theater with her introduction to drag. She still participates in productions and often performs in drag, though the response to that can vary.
One occurrence in which DeLusty’s drag caused some backlash in the theater was during a number with a former lead actor of a production she participated in. “He needed to leave because he did not feel comfortable dancing in one eight-count with me where we just sway and then I walk away from him, fanning myself like, ‘oh my gosh, he touched me,’” DeLusty says, attributing the lead actor’s desertion to discomfort surrounding the idea of any kind of relationship with a drag queen. As DeLusty says, “I was playing the character. He's not that hot.”
DeLusty’s Idahoan domain is shared with a variety of other queens, including one Jazmyn J, whose drag persona began as a simple Halloween costume.
“Most of the songs that I will choose are very self empowering,” J shares. She tends to avoid songs with profanity as personal preference, though she is quick to encourage all prospective performers to do whatever feels right and representative of their own self. As a self-identified “showgirl” J highlights the importance of authenticity in her acts, and shares that she prefers to perform in front of large audiences due to the higher level of engagement in that environment. “I am not a background noise,” J says, “because doing drag takes three to four hours to get ready.”
After having performed at different universities for several years J is able to say that she loves interacting with college crowds– CWU among them. J says that she is passionate about being able to transport her audience away from their worries, if only for a moment. “If I could take you away for three to five minutes during that number and take your mind out of whether you have an exam the following day, or what you're going to eat or if you had just had a break up or whatever you're experiencing, at least for the moment that we are on stage, we are taking you on a journey somewhere else.”
For J, her performance art is not only a creative outlet for herself, but also escapism for the crowd. When performing for college students, she is enthusiastic about showing them the possibilities of the life they have ahead of them and what they may be able to accomplish. J highlights her biggest ideal in performing for college audiences: “what’s really important, aside from entertaining you all, is providing that inspiration.”